Macbeth: essay prep Flashcards
Recite the thesis for Macbeth.
Written in 1606, the year after the Gunpowder Plot, Macbeth is a play designed ultimately to protect King James’ best interests and also to uphold Jacobean ideas about the natural order (the Great Chain of Being) and religion. During the play, the themes of death, morality, loyalty, the supernatural, religion and so on are discussed, and in particular, [blank] is used to convey ideas about [blank] to a Jacobean audience.
Starting with this conversation (Act 5 Scene 3 from “When I behold” to “Which weighs upon the heart”), explore how far Shakespeare presents Macbeth as a
male character who changes during the play. (plan, thesis + 1 paragraph, 16 minutes)
FOR A GRADE 9 (26-30 marks) ANSWER:
- include 2 or more interpretations of one quote
- select individual words in quotes and analyse, don’t explain
- have 2 or more topic sentences within a paragraph
- include at least 1-2 different readings of the quote (marxist, feminist, psychoanalytic etc.)
- include how the audience may have reacted at the time in comparison to a contemporary audience
- include the author’s possible intention for writing the quote in that way
- apply this analysis to the wider text
- include links to context where it applies (such as Holinshed’s Chronicles, historical witches, mythology, the Gunpowder Plot, Henry Garnet and equivocation, Malleus Maleficarum, the Great Chain of Being, King James I etc.)
- link points back to the topic sentence
Starting with this speech (Act 1 Scene 5, from “The raven” to “Hold, hold!”), explain how far you think Shakespeare presents Lady Macbeth
as a powerful woman. (plan, thesis + 1 paragraph, 16 minutes)
FOR A GRADE 9 (26-30 marks) ANSWER:
- include 2 or more interpretations of one quote
- select individual words in quotes and analyse, don’t explain
- have 2 or more topic sentences within a paragraph
- include at least 1-2 different readings of the quote (marxist, feminist, psychoanalytic etc.)
- include how the audience may have reacted at the time in comparison to a contemporary audience
- include the author’s possible intention for writing the quote in that way
- apply this analysis to the wider text
- include links to context where it applies (such as Holinshed’s Chronicles, historical witches, mythology, the Gunpowder Plot, Henry Garnet and equivocation, Malleus Maleficarum, the Great Chain of Being, King James I etc.)
- link points back to the topic sentence
Starting with this speech (Act 3 Scene 1, from “But to be safely thus” to “Who’s there”), explore how Shakespeare presents Macbeth’s fears. (plan, thesis + 1 paragraph, 16 minutes)
FOR A GRADE 9 (26-30 marks) ANSWER:
- include 2 or more interpretations of one quote
- select individual words in quotes and analyse, don’t explain
- have 2 or more topic sentences within a paragraph
- include at least 1-2 different readings of the quote (marxist, feminist, psychoanalytic etc.)
- include how the audience may have reacted at the time in comparison to a contemporary audience
- include the author’s possible intention for writing the quote in that way
- apply this analysis to the wider text
- include links to context where it applies (such as Holinshed’s Chronicles, historical witches, mythology, the Gunpowder Plot, Henry Garnet and equivocation, Malleus Maleficarum, the Great Chain of Being, King James I etc.)
- link points back to the topic sentence
‘Lady Macbeth is a female character who changes during the play.’
Starting with this moment in the play (Act 5 Scene 1, from “Out damned spot” to “to bed”), explore how far you agree with this view. (plan, thesis + 1 paragraph, 16 minutes)
FOR A GRADE 9 (26-30 marks) ANSWER:
- include 2 or more interpretations of one quote
- select individual words in quotes and analyse, don’t explain
- have 2 or more topic sentences within a paragraph
- include at least 1-2 different readings of the quote (marxist, feminist, psychoanalytic etc.)
- include how the audience may have reacted at the time in comparison to a contemporary audience
- include the author’s possible intention for writing the quote in that way
- apply this analysis to the wider text
- include links to context where it applies (such as Holinshed’s Chronicles, historical witches, mythology, the Gunpowder Plot, Henry Garnet and equivocation, Malleus Maleficarum, the Great Chain of Being, King James I etc.)
- link points back to the topic sentence
Starting with this conversation (Act 2 Scene 2, from “Methought” to “their guilt”), explore how Shakespeare presents the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. (plan, thesis + 1 paragraph, 16 minutes)
FOR A GRADE 9 (26-30 marks) ANSWER:
- include 2 or more interpretations of one quote
- select individual words in quotes and analyse, don’t explain
- have 2 or more topic sentences within a paragraph
- include at least 1-2 different readings of the quote (marxist, feminist, psychoanalytic etc.)
- include how the audience may have reacted at the time in comparison to a contemporary audience
- include the author’s possible intention for writing the quote in that way
- apply this analysis to the wider text
- include links to context where it applies (such as Holinshed’s Chronicles, historical witches, mythology, the Gunpowder Plot, Henry Garnet and equivocation, Malleus Maleficarum, the Great Chain of Being, King James I etc.)
- link points back to the topic sentence
Starting with Act 1 Scene 1, explore how Shakespeare presents women in the play. (plan, thesis + 1 paragraph, 16 minutes)
FOR A GRADE 9 (26-30 marks) ANSWER:
- include 2 or more interpretations of one quote
- select individual words in quotes and analyse, don’t explain
- have 2 or more topic sentences within a paragraph
- include at least 1-2 different readings of the quote (marxist, feminist, psychoanalytic etc.)
- include how the audience may have reacted at the time in comparison to a contemporary audience
- include the author’s possible intention for writing the quote in that way
- apply this analysis to the wider text
- include links to context where it applies (such as Holinshed’s Chronicles, historical witches, mythology, the Gunpowder Plot, Henry Garnet and equivocation, Malleus Maleficarum, the Great Chain of Being, King James I etc.)
- link points back to the topic sentence
Starting with Act 1 Scene 1, explore how Shakespeare presents the supernatural. (plan, thesis + 1 paragraph, 16 minutes)
FOR A GRADE 9 (26-30 marks) ANSWER:
- include 2 or more interpretations of one quote
- select individual words in quotes and analyse, don’t explain
- have 2 or more topic sentences within a paragraph
- include at least 1-2 different readings of the quote (marxist, feminist, psychoanalytic etc.)
- include how the audience may have reacted at the time in comparison to a contemporary audience
- include the author’s possible intention for writing the quote in that way
- apply this analysis to the wider text
- include links to context where it applies (such as Holinshed’s Chronicles, historical witches, mythology, the Gunpowder Plot, Henry Garnet and equivocation, Malleus Maleficarum, the Great Chain of Being, King James I etc.)
- link points back to the topic sentence
